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Gov. Rick Snyder: We are taking responsibility and taking action, focused on helping the people of Flint

Thursday, March 17, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Gov. Rick Snyder issued the following statement regarding his testimony today before the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform:

“I appreciated the opportunity to voluntarily testify before the committee today to explain the actions we are taking as a state to help the people of Flint and ensure that nothing like this can ever happen again. I also am thankful I was able to meet personally with Chair Jason Chaffetz and Ranking Member Elijah Cummings.

“This was a failure of government at all levels. Local, state, and federal officials all failed the families of Flint. There is plenty of blame to share, but finger pointing will not help the people of Flint. That’s why I’m committed to delivering permanent, long-term solutions and the clean, safe drinking water to Flint that every Michigan citizen deserves. Since I first learned that state water experts were wrong about the lead levels in Flint’s water, we have been taking action to protect and serve the people of Flint – and all of Michigan – better.

“There are thorough, independent investigations underway to identify what went wrong, identify changes we need to make, and help our citizens hold us accountable for fixing this problem. I remain committed to a complete and comprehensive change in state government that puts public health and safety first.

“We are taking responsibility and taking action in Michigan, and that is absolutely essential in Washington, too. Inefficient, ineffective, and unaccountable bureaucrats at the EPA allowed this disaster to continue unnecessarily. I understand that the people of Flint are angry; they should be angry. But I am fully committed to fixing this. I am going to make Flint and every community in Michigan a better place to live. We have a lot to learn, and a lot to do.”